1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an intake manifold for an internal combustion engine and, more particularly, to a manifold having interchangeable parts capable of disassembly and reassembly.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Internal combustion engines generally include an intake manifold. The intake manifold directs air or a fuel and air mixture into the cylinders of the engines where the fuel and air mixture is combusted, releasing mechanical energy to power the engine.
Traditionally, intake manifolds have been made by either casting metals into a single component or by forming plastics or polymers into several different pieces that are then permanently bonded together by, for example, friction welding. Any subsequent attempt to disassemble either of the traditional types results in severe damage to the intake manifold. Therefore, these construction types precluded the intake manifold from being tuned to alter engine performance in any way alterations such as clearing or removing excess metal or other material or removing and discarding the current intake manifold and obtaining and installing a new intake manifold. Such replacement is both costly and wasteful. Additionally, removal of the old intake manifold destroys the seal between the intake manifold and the engine. This exposes internal components of the engine to external debris and contamination. Currently, then, in order to tune engine performance by means of the intake manifold, a user must essentially purchase an entirely new intake manifold part and subject the engine to potential damage from external contamination. Therefore, tuning by manipulation of the intake manifold, i.e., intake runner length or intake diameter, becomes financially costly and prone to cause engine damage.
Prior art patents disclosing multipiece intake manifolds capable of being disassembled are known, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,831,566 issued to Thomas and U.S. Pat. No. 4,279,224 issued to Szabo et al. However, none of these patents provides for a manifold comprising easily removed and replaced components having differing characteristics, such as air inlet size and internal runner shape, to alter engine performance.